Biking in Twin Cities (Minneapolis, St. Paul: safest area, theater, live in)

[South Minny]

Hi all -- Admittedly a big bike person, adding two cents to tout Twin Cities a bit from a biker's perspective. Minnesota as a whole was just named 5th best state in the country for biking. I live in south Minneapolis, a couple minutes from Minnehaha creek bike path that connects all around the city, and have a twenty minute, under four-mile bike commute into downtown on marked bike lanes. Lots of fun, recreational bike events in spring-summer-fall, and good urban single-track for mountain-bikers in and outside Minneapolis. Good biking info at City of Minneapolis website biking entry:

Bicycling in Minneapolis

and/or Twin Cities Biking News website here:

Around the Twin Cities - Twin Cites Biking News - Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Beyond (broken link)

Take care all.

[Ben Around]

Yes, gotta love the trail system in the cities! We're about 1/2 mile from the River trail in St Paul. From there we can go miles in any direction. Never get tired of it!

My wife wants to commute to her job in Roseville, but no trail to there and even if she bikes on side streets, there's a big no-bikes-land surrounding Rosedale Center, and her office is the other side of it.

[kuan]

I love the biking around here too. Can't beat it with a stick!

[Slig]

I'm in south Minneapolis and have been biking 4-5 days a week to work in Eagan. It's a solid trail, follow the light rail to Minnehaha Parkway, cross the bridge and follow the bike path on Minnehaha Park, go through Fort Snelling, go across the Mendota bridge and I'm to work. Meanwhile my co-workers sit in traffic after work so they can get to their stationery bike at the healthclub and pay $50/month. No thanks.

[What!]

You bike from South Minneapolis to Eagan? Hardcore. I used to bike from Excelsior Blvd (close to the Mann Theater) to the 400 bar off Washington and I felt like a big man. Now that I know you bike from Minneapolis to Eagan my pride has felt a significant amount of shrinkage. Ouch.

[Slig]

Originally Posted by What!

You bike from South Minneapolis to Eagan? Hardcore. I used to bike from Excelsior Blvd (close to the Mann Theater) to the 400 bar off Washington and I felt like a big man. Now that I know you bike from Minneapolis to Eagan my pride has felt a significant amount of shrinkage. Ouch.

It's a 9 mile ride and takes me about 40 minutes. It isn't as bad as it sounds.

[kuan]

Nice thing about the Twincities is the bike paths are always cleared. A lot of times before the roads even.

[Ben Around]

Originally Posted by Slig

I'm in south Minneapolis and have been biking 4-5 days a week to work in Eagan. It's a solid trail, follow the light rail to Minnehaha Parkway, cross the bridge and follow the bike path on Minnehaha Park, go through Fort Snelling, go across the Mendota bridge and I'm to work. Meanwhile my co-workers sit in traffic after work so they can get to their stationery bike at the healthclub and pay $50/month. No thanks.

Very impressive! The trail between Minnehaha Pk. and Pike Island is one of my very favorites. Beats the heck out of Hwy. 55, I'll bet.

[Slig]

Originally Posted by Ben Around

Very impressive! The trail between Minnehaha Pk. and Pike Island is one of my very favorites. Beats the heck out of Hwy. 55, I'll bet.

Those trails around there are some of the more beautiful I've seen. I don't go through Fort Snelling anymore because the trail to get up to the Mendota Bridge is too steep. I take the trail that goes down the road above the trail entrance and around the front of the fort. But yeah, that whole area is really cool and it bypasses alot of traffic and risk of getting hit by stupid drivers.

[MNNative]

Is that a law for no bikes in that area or is it just not the safest area for bikers? My husband works just near Rosedale and was thinking about getting his bike out before it gets unbearably cold...He hasn't heard of anything regarding that and one of his coworkers bikes to Rosedale and catches the bus pretty routinely...

Originally Posted by Ben Around

Yes, gotta love the trail system in the cities! We're about 1/2 mile from the River trail in St Paul. From there we can go miles in any direction. Never get tired of it!

My wife wants to commute to her job in Roseville, but no trail to there and even if she bikes on side streets, there's a big no-bikes-land surrounding Rosedale Center, and her office is the other side of it.